KUALA LUMPUR, May 13 — PAS is not in a hurry to make a move in the Terengganu's ongoing power struggle, party president Datuk Seri Hadi Abdul Awang said today, distancing the Islamist party from swirling rumours of possible defections from the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition.

Hadi declined to give a firm answer on his party's next move but indicated that PAS is unlikely to attempt seducing the three assemblymen who resigned from Umno to defect to the Pakatan Rakyat opposition pact.

“PAS will not enter a 'rumah berhantu' (haunted house),” he said, dismissing speculation that PR wants to encourage defections in order to secure a simple majority in the Terengganu state assembly.

The northern state went into crisis yesterday after Datuk Seri Ahmad Said announced that he quit Umno — the party which dominates BN — just hours after he was replaced by Datuk Ahmad Razif Abdul Rahman as mentri besar.

Two other resignations from Umno followed, reducing BN’s number of seats in the 32-seat assembly to 14, effectively making the coalition a minority government.

Hadi, who was in the national capital for an event, said his party will wait for Terengganu monarch Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin to issue a decree on the matter before deciding on their next course of action.

“PAS respects the position of the Sultan, and secondly, PAS does not want to cause any hardship for the rakyat.

“We will see what the Sultan and the rakyat say, and then we will decide,” he said.

BN effectively became a minority government today after Ahmad Said, along with the assemblymen for Ajil, Ghazali Taib, and Bukit Besi, Roslee Daud, suddenly quit from Umno to become independents.

The trio however have yet to make clear their current political allegiance.

Prior to their resignations, BN held a simple majority of 17 seats over PR's 15. PAS held 14 and PKR one seat.

With the power balance now tipped the other way, pundits are drawing parallels with the Perak constitutional crisis in 2009 when PR lost control of the state administration after three of their elected representatives declared themselves BN-friendly independents.

Constitutional experts said the newly-minted Ahmad Razif could choose to resign along with his entire executive committee, which would pave the way for a new mentri besar to be appointed by the Terengganu Sultan.

But if the Seberang Takir lawmaker chooses instead to cling to his mentri besar post, the other elected representatives could then call for a vote of no confidence.

Should Ahmad Razif fail the test, it is likely that the legislative assembly will have to be dissolved leading to snap state elections.